Madeline and the Treasure Hunt
Madeline and the Treasure Hunt is an episode of the second season of Madeline. Summary It's Springtime in Paris and the weather has just turned warm and sunny. Unfortunately this is the time of year where the Girls become the most lethargic and distracted in class. Ms. Clavel has difficulty getting the Girls to pay attention to their geography and history segments. When she asks Madeline what is the largest country in Asia, Madeline mistakenly guesses Tokyo (a major city '''in Japan). Lord Cucuface is sitting in on the class and he's not happy with their progress. He asks the class for the capital city of '''Italy. Danielle guesses London (the capital of Britain), Nicole guesses Stockholm (the capital of Sweden), while Madeline guesses Constantinople (which isn't even a capital city in Turkey). Genevieve is quite shocked that the Girls are so clueless with geopolitics. Lord Cucuface in frustration turns to local geography. He asks where in Paris Napoleon is buried. Danielle guesses the Eiffel Tower, Nicole guesses the Arc de Triomphe, while Madeline guesses the Louvre. Lord Cucuface goes purple in the face and declares they're all wrong. Fed up with the situation, he leaves and threatens Ms. Clavel that he will report her to the board of directors for her failure to teach the students. She humbly understands and tells the Girls they will need to improve their efforts in history and geography. The Girls still have trouble concentrating given the nice day. Madeline then spots Pepito on a tree branch out the window. Ms. Clavel tells him to come inside so he won't fall. Pepito reveals that the city newspaper is holding a treasure hunt. The prize for finding the treasure is one thousand francs and the winner's picture on the front page of the next news issue. Pepito's interested in winning the prize so he can buy a small yacht. The Girls are more interested in the publicity, to which Ms. Clavel tells them that fame and fortune aren't always important. But seeing an opportunity, Ms. Clavel consents to the class embarking on the treasure hunt. As the Girls and Pepito race out the door, Ms. Clavel packs a history book and a map of Paris. As they leave the school, they read off the first clue which tells them to wear a coat and hat while shopping. It leads them to Les Halles, a famous old fresh food market. Madeline asks Pepito what the next clue is, but he shushes her, pointing out a number of other treasure hunters who are their competition. They look everywhere in the marketplace for the clue before finding a letter from the newspaper taped under a stall umbrella. It tells them the next location is where a great leader rests. Nicole assumes it's Elysee Palace, the residence of the French President, but Madeline isn't convinced by the wording. Ms. Clavel suggests they think of a past leader. While in thought, Madeline sees Pepito put his hand in his jacket, reminding her of France's great Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte. As soon as they hear this the other treasure hunters take off. Their stampede knocks over a number of food stalls. This angers the merchants who blame Ms. Clavel for the mess. As she's trying to explain that it was an accident, a cameraman begins filming the group unseen. Madeline says they must clean up the mess and the girls agree. Pepito is annoyed because it will delay them from finding the treasure. Everyone gets to work and the mess is cleaned quickly. Outside Madeline asks Ms. Clavel where Napoleon is buried. She hands her a map of Paris and Madeline finds Napoleon's Tomb at Les Invalides. The class rushes to the Tomb and marvel at its historical significance. The other treasure hunters mill about and Pepito spots the unfounded clue. As everyone rushes to see it, Madeline hears someone calling for help. She pulls Pepito over to a girl who has lost her grandmother's bracelet over the side of the Tomb. Madeline engineers a plan to retrieve it by extracting a loose string from her hat and applying a piece of gum. Ms. Clavel is quite annoyed for Madeline's brazen disregard for having chewing gum in class, but relents as she is using it to help someone. Madeline uses the sticky string to retrieve the bracelet as the cameraman films the scene. The Girl is quite thankful to Madeline for her help while Pepito is very annoyed for her lack of focus in the contest. The Girls read the next clue and Madeline realizes that it's refering to the Arc de Triumphe. The class rushes to the Arc, but to Pepito's dismay he sees the other treasure hunters already leaving the site. Madeline keeps his spirits up by suggesting they might get the clue wrong. The clue states they'll need to climb high, to which Madeline believes it's the Eiffel Tower. She asks Ms. Clavel if she knows a shortcut. Ms. Clavel hands her the map, and Madeline takes them on a very scenic route through Paris to the tower. At the top of the Eiffel Tower, they find another clue that's more vague. The other treasure hunters catch up to them at this point. Madeline then spots a lonely cat on the deck and picks it up as the cameraman films. Pepito deduces the next location is the River Seine. The other hunters rush for it as Madeline states they must find the cat's owner, much to Pepito's annoyance. They find the Cat's owner at the base of the Tower. Pepito finally gives up on the treasure hunt, noting the other hunters are far ahead of them. Madeline apologizes to him for the failed venture. Meanwhile back at the school Lord Cucuface has returned. He's annoyed that no one is there studying. He then sees a test with a poorly answered geography question and angrily declares that he will tell the board to fire Ms. Clavel. Genevieve overhears this and becomes very distressed. Meanwhile the class has reached the Seine and see the hunters on a boat. Madeline then reasons that the actual location is by another set of boats. The class heads to Tuileries Gardens which is known for toy boats sailed in fountains. They spot the treasure under the fountain. She goes to retrieve it, but knocks a toy sailboat. As the boy sailing it jumps into the fountain to save it, he slips and falls. Pepito goes to help him while Madeline sets it right. Just then the mob of hunters arrives and tries to scramble for the treasure. One of the hunters is quite poor and is trying to win the treasure to support her children. The other hunters take pity on her and allow her to move ahead. Madeline too feels sympathetic and allows the woman to take the treasure. The other Girls are disappointed, but agree that it was the noble thing to do. A few days later they read the story in the paper and feel content about losing the treasure hunt. Lord Cucuface then arrives and begins to quiz the class on Parisian geography again, assured that he will replace Ms. Clavel if the Girls can't answer the questions. To his surprise and Ms. Clavel's elation, the girls answer all his questions correctly. He's quite happy and decides to reinstate Ms. Clavel. He also treats the class to a matinee at the local theater. During the matinee, a news reel shows all the footage captured by the cameraman. He documented all of the noble actions taken by the students as they undertook the treasure hunt and credits them for making Paris a great city. Pepito is quite happy that they're all famous. They return home, happy to live in such a beautiful city. Trivia * When Pepito and Madeline reference Napoleon, they mimic his well-known habit of putting his hand in his jacket. While many theorize that he did so to hide a physical ailment, in reality it was a trendy habit of the time that said one came from good ancestry. Song Ah Paris, Ooh La La Category:Episodes